How to see the lunar eclipse in Kansas City on Thursday night, Friday morning
If you love to stay up late, Thursday is a good night to do it: a near-total lunar eclipse is happening at around 3 a.m. on Friday morning. This rare event will cause the moon to appear red for around 30 minutes in the early hours of Friday, Nov. 19. The best times to spot the moon’s red glow are between 2:45 a.m. and 3:20 a.m.
Tonight’s eclipse will be visible with the naked eye, but you can also use binoculars to get a closer look. High-powered telescopes are not needed to witness this event. The biggest problem eclipse lovers usually encounter is inconvenient clouds-- but luckily, tonight’s forecast shows clear skies.
“It’s a very deep eclipse-- not quite total, but very close to total,” said David Young, director of the Powell Observatory in Louisburg, Kansas. “You might try binoculars, but you’ll see it very nice with the unaided eye.”
Lunar eclipses occur when the moon passes through the shadow of the Earth. Usually, the moon is illuminated by direct sunlight, causing it to appear white. But during an eclipse, the only light that can reach the moon must first pass through the Earth’s atmosphere. This causes the moon to appear red for a brief time while it travels through the darkest part of Earth’s shadow, known as the umbra.
“The moon’s always going to be visible if it’s clear,” said Young. “You don’t need dark skies to look at the moon.” This means that even in the center of Kansas City, the eclipse should be visible as long as there are no clouds overhead.
You can see what other planets will be visible in the sky from Kansas City using this tool.
Tonight’s lunar eclipse will be visible across North America as well as parts of South America, eastern Australia, Korea, and Japan. If you don’t want to wake up to see it for yourself, keep an eye out for stunning photography of the eclipse tomorrow morning. Amateur astronomers around the world are sure to capture the event for anyone who couldn’t see it in person.
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This story was originally published November 18, 2021 at 12:25 PM.